Opinion: Will Arthur Shine?

Koby Arthur; remember him? The youngster is now becoming less of a youngster and therefore we would have expected him to get involved more with the first team set up this year. For me, he is the same as Reece Brown in terms of a period of stinted development but unlike Brown who has had injury problems, Arthur just doesn’t seem to be developing at the rate that we would expect.

What are the reasons for this? Well unlike many young players, he developed his strength quite early on. He has muscle which wasn’t expected at the tender age when he burst onto the stage but he doesn’t seem to be able to use that strength to his advantage. For a tough looking lad, he gets barged off the ball very easily. He doesn’t seem to get the right shape upon shielding the ball and it is a mystery because surely he would have been taught this in his time at the club.

Another thing is, he is small so needs to utilise this. There are many small players such as Messi for example who use their small height to their advantage as it gives them a low centre of gravity. This is an advantage when dribbling because it means you can shift directions quickly and therefore gain more ground this way in order to beat a man. Arthur doesn’t try and dribble all that often, he tries to use his pace to beat a man rather than his quick feet. If he learnt to adapt his style to his body type, then he would do much better.

Having said all this, I am glad he is still at the club. At youth level, it was noticeable that he was head and shoulders above others in terms of finishing. His shooting is his best attribute by far; often getting power and placement perfectly. So maybe he isn’t a central midfielder or winger like we have all grown to believe. Maybe he should play in the number 10 role just behind the striker. In the first team, this could give Donaldson some support. However, Fabbrini is also battling for that position.

In full, he is a good player but needs to shine this year or I fear that the club will lose patience with him. For Arthur and Brown, they really have to step up this year.